Soft restraining system

ABSTRACT

A device for restraining a miscreant includes a bell shaped tubular body adapted to envelop the torso of a miscreant. Openings at each end allow the body to be passed over the head to surround the torso of the miscreant. Restraining straps are each adapted to encircle one half of the tubular body. Each end of each of the straps may be locked at two diametrically opposed locations on the body. To deploy the device, it is held generally above the head of the miscreant and pulled downwardly over his head and torso. When the upper opening has passed the head of the miscreant to encircle his neck, one free end of each strap is pulled manually to cause lockable tightening thereof around the body of the device, thereby restraining the miscreant.

The present invention relates to a soft restraint system. More particularly, but not exclusively, it relates to a soft restraint system enabling people upholding the law and other responsible personnel to restrain a troublemaker or miscreant engaged in disorderly or criminal behaviour.

In one example it may be used on board aircraft. The term ‘air rage’ has been used in recent times to describe airline passengers who, for whatever reason, become disruptive or violent whilst an aircraft is in flight. In so doing, they may annoy fellow passengers, or may even disrupt or endanger the flight. This has caused airline companies considerable concern. Indeed, on occasions, aircraft have been diverted to unload the miscreant.

The soft restraint system may of course be used physically to restrain miscreants or other troublesome individuals in many other situations, such as by police, prison officers, nurses or other personnel engaged in law enforcement operations, or in any other situation where people are likely to be faced with a person out of control or likely to do violence either to himself herself or those around him or her, such as in psychiatric hospitals, etc.

One increasing problem these days is that often, the staff most immediately available to deal with a miscreant are female or people less strong than the person who must be restrained.

At present, it is known to use a restraining set of handcuffs, but these are not easy to apply and a certain amount of force is needed to bring the miscreant's hands together before the handcuffs can be applied.

It is also known from our co-pending UK Patent Application No. 9927364.1 to provide a restraint system which includes a tubular member adapted to be placed loosely over the head and around the torso of the miscreant. However, this restraint system then needs to be held in place by means of padlocks, firstly to narrow the neck opening of the tubular member and secondly to lock the lower end of the tubular member between the legs of the miscreant. By use of this device, the miscreant can be rendered harmless since the hands and any weapons carried thereby will be enclosed within the tubular member.

However, the member is not always easy to apply, particularly if the miscreant does not wish it to be applied. Finding and applying the padlocks can take valuable seconds. Furthermore, the shape of the restraint system sometimes makes it difficult or awkward to apply the system over the head and shoulders of a miscreant.

It is an object of the invention to provide a system which overcomes the above disadvantages and which enables application of a first degree of restraint to the miscreant, i.e. to make it difficult but not impossible for him to react. Furthermore, it should enable application of a second degree of restraint to be applied immediately or soon thereafter so that the miscreant is restrained from further damage to himself, herself or those around him or her.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for restraining a miscreant, said device comprising a substantially tubular body adapted to envelop the torso of a miscreant and having an upper, in use, opening adapted to be passed over the head to surround the neck of the miscreant, and a lower, in use, opening, said body being provided with a restraint strap system which comprises a pair of straps each adapted to encircle substantially one half of the tubular body and locking means for each end of each of said straps disposed at two substantially diametrically opposed locations on the tubular body.

Preferably, said straps so pass through the locking means as to be manually graspable at either free end, whereby manual traction of either free end of a strap will cause lockable tightening of that strap around part of the body.

Advantageously, the restraint strap system comprises two pairs of straps, one disposed above, in use, the other.

In this case, the upper, in use, pair of straps is adapted to encircle the miscreant in the region of his elbows and the lower, in use, pair of straps is adapted to encircle the miscreant in the region of his knees.

The body preferably has a substantially frustoconical shape extending from a comparatively narrow upper, in use, end to a wider lower, in use, end.

The substantially frustoconical shape may be described as a bell-shape, in which case a wide, lowermost end is adapted more easily to envelop the head and shoulders of the miscreant.

Also narrowing of the bell-shape towards an upper end of the body is adapted to constrict the shoulders and/or upper arms of the miscreant as the body of the device is pulled downwardly over the torso.

The material of the body is preferably of a foraminous woven material.

The locking means may comprise a pair of D-rings at each end of each strap.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of restraining a miscreant comprising the steps of providing a device as described above, deploying said device generally above the head of said miscreant, pulling the device downwardly over the head and torso of the miscreant until the opening at the upper end of the tubular body has passed the head of the miscreant, and manually pulling one free end of each strap means to cause lockable tightening thereof around the body of the device, thereby restraining the miscreant at at least one location.

In the case where there are two strap systems, it is preferred that the upper, in use, strap system be tightened prior to tightening the lower, in use, strap system.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be more particularly described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a device embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear elevation of the device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a scrap view of locking means for the device when in a relaxed condition to enable unlocking;

FIG. 4 is a scrap view of the locking means when the straps are locked; and

FIG. 5 shows an alleged miscreant suitably restrained by the device.

Referring now to the drawings, more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a restraint device which comprises a substantially bell-shaped body 1 of foraminous woven material generally dimensioned to encircle the torso of a miscreant of at least average size. The device may be produced in a range of sizes to suit the problem. The body 1 is formed of two pieces of material joined at side seams 6 a and 6 b. At its upper, in use, end is an opening 2, defined by a substantially inextendible seam 3, dimensioned to fit over the head of the miscreant and encircle his neck. The lower, in use, end of the body 1 is of much greater circumference so as more easily to encapsulate the head and shoulders of the miscreant, in a manner which will be described below. The lower opening 5 is encircled by a seam 4 of substantially inextendible material and is provided with two pairs of handles, 7 a and 7 b. These handles 7 a and 7 b extend to the side seams 6 a and 6 b respectively and are affixed to the body and to the lower and the side seams by stitching or the like along their length. This prevents tearing of the foraminous material when force is applied to the handles.

In order to carry out a first phase of restraint of a miscreant, an empowered operative, who may be a police officer, a prison warder, a member of airline personnel, a nurse or the like should have the device to hand. It may possibly be so folded into a belt-mounted bag that it may be deployed at a moment's notice. Preferably, the handles 7 a and 7 b protrude from the bag or are easily available for use by a pair of operatives. The handles may be so colour coded or otherwise identifiable that one operative may take the pair of handles 7 a and the other may take the pair of handles 7 b. The two operatives then place the bell mouth lower opening 5 above the head of the miscreant and bring the device 1 down sharply so that it envelops first the head and then the torso of the miscreant, with the handles 7 a and 7 b generally finishing in the calf region of the miscreant.

The upper opening 2 will at that point surround the neck of the miscreant. The upper part of the bell-shape of the device 1 will tend, as it is pulled downwardly, to constrict the shoulders and upper arms of the miscreant so that it is more difficult, but not yet impossible, for the miscreant to deploy his arms aggressively.

At this point, it is important to move on to the second stage of restraint as soon as possible.

For this, there are provided two strap systems:—

-   -   upper, in use, straps 8 a and 8 b, are located to encircle the         miscreant in the region just above the elbows; and     -   lower, in use, straps 18 a and 18 b, are located to encircle the         miscreant in the region just above the knees.

The upper strap system comprises two straps 8 a and 8 b, each passing around a respective side of the body 1 from substantially the middle of the front to substantially the middle of the back face of the body 1. The straps 8 a and 8 b pass through loops 10, each fixed to a reinforcement patch 11, themselves attached to the material of the body 1. As shown, there are at least two loops 10 for each strap 8 a,8 b (one at the front and one at the rear), although more may be provided if so desired.

At the centre of both front and rear panels of the body 1 there is provided a reinforcement patch 12 to which are mounted pairs of locking D-rings 14 a and 15 a, 14 b and 15 b. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, each end of each strap 8 passes through an upper D-ring 14 and then through and around a lower D-ring 15, passing back through the upper D-ring 14 and ending in a grip 9 a or 9 b. The end of each grip 9 is folded over on itself and sewn at 16 a,16 b.

FIG. 3 shows this arrangement in relaxed condition where a strap may be released by passing the strap 8 through the upper D-ring 14, toward the centre of the reinforcement patch 12.

FIG. 4 shows the arrangement when the grips 9 a and 9 b have been pulled outwardly to tighten the straps 8 a and 8 b. The D-ring 15 is flipped over to trap the strap 8 between it and D-ring 14, thereby causing the strap to become locked. It can be further tightened by pulling the grip 9 a, but cannot be released without moving D-ring 15 back to its position as shown in FIG. 3. To this end, each D-ring 15 may optionally be provided with a tag or pull-string to facilitate the release process.

As can be seen, there are two pairs of grips 9 a,9 b—one pair to the front of the body 1 and one pair to the rear. Pulling on either grip will cause tightening of the corresponding strap 8 around the respective side of the miscreant. The other end of that strap will be or become locked by the D-rings at the other side of the body 1.

Either hand of each operative may be used to pull the grip at either the front or rear of the respective side of the miscreant. Ideally, both operatives will pull the grips on the same side of the body 1, since this gives a more controlled action with regard to the miscreant. However, when urgent action is required, it may be necessary for one operative to pull his rear grip and the other to pull his front grip. Indeed, it may be possible for a single operative to pull both grips 9 a and 9 b of one pair, one away from the other.

The lower strap system includes two straps 18 a, 18 b, each passing around a respective side of the body, from the middle of the front to the middle of its back. The straps pass through loops 20 stitched to reinforcement patches 21 and again pass through pairs of D-rings 24 a, 25 a and 24 b and 25 b, all stitched or attached to reinforcement patch 22. The loose ends of the straps 18 a and 18 b form respectively pulling grips 19 a and 19 b. Again, if each operative pulls one of the grips 19 a or 19 b, the straps will become tightened and locked so that the knees of the miscreant will be restrained and he will be finally unable to make nuisance of himself. This situation is shown in FIG. 5.

As has been described, the system is especially suitable for use by operatives less strong than the miscreant since they can pull downwardly against the individual's struggles upwardly. In such a contest, the downward force usually wins.

The device of the invention is generally safe to use as it avoids restraint techniques associated with medical problems such as positional asphyxia and it is made of foraminous breathable material. It is also lightweight and therefore the miscreant should not suffer from overheating or be forced to carry a heavy burden. Hence, it can be retained in position for lengthy periods of time until the miscreant can be handed over to the police or be dealt with by more permanent forms of restraint, if that is appropriate.

The apparatus embodying the invention is very easy to use, and does not involve intensive training. It can be applied quickly from a stowage container which can be carried by the person of an operative or may be located at convenient points within any space where trouble could be expected.

The device may be used in aeroplanes, in police cells, in prisons, in hospitals and in arrest situations and indeed anywhere where a miscreant may be breaking the law or causing civil unrest. 

1. A device for restraining a miscreant, said device comprising a substantially tubular body adapted to envelop the torso of a miscreant and having an upper, in use, opening adapted to be passed over the head to surround the neck of the miscreant, and a lower, in use, opening, characterised in that said body is provided with a restraint strap system which comprises at least one pair of straps each adapted to encircle substantially one half of the tubular body and locking means for each end of each of said straps disposed at two substantially diametrically opposed locations on the tubular body.
 2. A device according to claim 1, characterised in that the straps so pass through the locking means as to be manually graspable at either free end, whereby manual traction of either free end of a strap will cause lockable tightening of that strap around part of the body.
 3. A device according to claim 1, characterised in that the restraint strap system comprises two pairs of straps, one disposed above, in use, the other.
 4. A device according to claim 3, characterised in that the upper, in use, pair of straps is adapted to encircle the miscreant in the region of his elbows and the lower, in use, pair of straps is adapted to encircle the miscreant in the region of his knees.
 5. A device according to claim 1, characterised in that the body has a substantially frustoconical shape extending from a comparatively narrow upper, in use, end to a wider lower, in use, end.
 6. A device according to claim 1, characterised in that the material of the body comprises a foraminous woven material.
 7. A device according to claim 1, characterised in that the locking means comprises a pair of D-rings at each end of the strap.
 8. A method of restraining a miscreant comprising the steps of providing a device according to claim 1, said device generally above the head of said miscreant, pulling the device downwardly over the head and torso of the miscreant until the opening at the upper end of the tubular body has passed the head of the miscreant, characterised by the steps of manually pulling one free end of each strap to cause lockable tightening thereof around the body of the device, thereby restraining the miscreant at at least one location.
 9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the restraint strap system comprises two pairs of straps, one pair disposed above in use the other pair, and characterised by the further step of tightening the upper, in use, strap pair prior to tightening the lower, in use, strap pair. 